I got out of bed again. I couldn’t stay still, hearing this bullshit. I ran my hands through my hair. I couldn’t believe this. Fucking bitches! I didn’t beat women, but if I did, those two would be at the top of my list.
“You’ve got to be kidding me! Your stepmom and sister did that to you? Why did your dad allow it?” I snarled.
“He didn’t know. They never did it in front of him, and I never told him. He loved them and I didn’t want to cause trouble.” She didn’t want to cause trouble. Jesus, did she ever do anything for herself? This kind of thing stopped now. I would make it my life’s mission to show her she was loved and perfect.
“Where are they now?”
“My dad passed away a few years ago. My stepmom and sister are still back in Arkansas, I think. I left there and moved around for a while, then I settled here about six months ago.” She looked forlorn. I got back into bed with her and hugged her to my chest. I kissed her face.
“I’m sorry about your dad. But as for those two bitches, I’m thankful they’re not near here. Otherwise, I might have to beat the hell out of a couple of women, and I don’t do that. Baby, I don’t care what they told you or what anyone else said or did. They were all idiots. You’re beautiful inside and out and mine. I’ll make sure you know that for the rest of our lives.”
She pushed me down and kissed me. Her kiss was passionate. Soon we were devouring each other. As I sank into her again, I made a promise to her and myself to make her see what she meant to me. Always.
??????
The last month has been really good. Jessica seemed to be coming more out of her shell. She smiled more and acted like she believed me when I told her I loved her and how beautiful she was. I knew it would take more than a month for it to fully sink in, but it would. I made sure to show her how I felt every day.
Things were calm around the compound, and we watched last weekend as Rebel and Madisen were married. Watching the two of them up there saying their vows only made me want to marry Jessica more. I had a ring and was waiting for the best time to ask her. I knew without a single doubt she was the one for me.
Other women didn’t do a thing for me. I could see the bunnies in the common room going at it with my brothers and not even blink. They didn’t turn me on at all. The only woman who did, was my nymph and our sex life proved it. I couldn’t keep my hands off her. She seemed to have the same problem with me. The guys had begun to tease us to get a room anytime they saw us giving each other heated looks or kissing. Jessica would laugh and blush.
The bakery was booming. Even with Madisen back to work at least part time, Cleo, Jessica, and Trudie were working like crazy. It might have helped if Madisen worked full-time, but Rebel refused to let her now that she was over five months along. I couldn’t blame him a bit. If Jessica was pregnant, I’d want her to be resting too.
And thinking of getting pregnant, I found I wanted to discuss having kids with her. I wanted them. I hoped she did too, but I wanted to hold back until after I asked her to marry me. No need to scare her all at once. There was time for me to bring that up to her after I got my ring on her finger.
To get that to happen, I’d been talking to Madisen about ideas of what I could do to set the stage for my proposal. She told me to just ask her. I wanted it to be something special that she’d remember for the rest of her life. She’d given me a few ideas that coupled with my own, I thought would be perfect. I just had a few more things to get into place, then I’d be asking my woman to marry me. I can guarantee you. It wouldn’t be a long, tedious engagement either.
With the guard duty over for the ladies, we were working on getting ourselves set up as an actual security business in addition to the spa and tattoo shop. Like what they did in Dublin Falls, we’d provide physical security and remote monitoring of the system we set up. I had an electronics and electrical background, so wiring the systems and setting up cameras were my forte along with actual bodyguard duty.
Jessica was at the bakery today. I was finishing a wiring job on our first client in town. I wanted to be sure everything went perfectly. If it did, I could see a lot more businesses asking us to do their security. Outlaw had set everything up on the back end to monitor and send out alerts to us if anything tripped an alarm.
Tonight, most of us were planning to kick back at the clubhouse and have some fun. I was hoping to get Jessica to loosen up. She was polite and seemed to like everyone, but she held herself back. I wanted her to see the club as her family, not just mine, especially since she didn’t have one.
Speaking of family, I’d been thinking a lot about what she’d said concerning her stepmom and stepsister. My blood boiled whenever I did. She refused to go into detail on who else treated her like they did, but there had been others. I honestly couldn’t believe it. Everyone told me how lucky I was to have her and how gorgeous she was. The guys weren’t shy about telling me how sexy she was either.
As I finished up, I looked at the clock. I had time to get back to the clubhouse and shower before Jessica arrived. She had agreed to go out to a shop in town with Devyn and Jocelyn after she got off at the bakery. They would head to the club afterward for the party. She wasn’t sure what they were looking for, but it seemed to make both of them happy to be going. With Devyn being only a couple of weeks away from popping out the baby, anything that made her happy made Ace happy. It went without saying, she’d include her mom.
Making sure I’d gotten all my tools, I headed out to my truck after telling the owner we’d finish the setup on the other end and let him know when we were live. I had to take the truck today instead of my bike. No way to carry all my tools and supplies on my bike.
A quick fifteen minutes later and I was pulling into the compound. Seeing that neither Devyn nor Jessica’s cars were back, I took a quick detour. I headed over to check out our house. So far, I’d been able to keep it a secret that the house was for us. When she saw it, I had told her the club had decided to not only build townhomes but a guesthouse like they had in Dublin Falls. She never questioned it. I think Bull, Rebel, and Ace had told the other women the same thing so they wouldn’t let it slip.
The foundation was poured and most of the framing was up. I couldn’t wait for it to be one hundred percent done. I wanted to move her within the walls of the club. Besides, her apartment was too small, and we had no privacy. The walls were like tissue paper.
Satisfied with what I saw, I went to the clubhouse and down to my room. I wanted to be done with my shower before she got here. Tonight was more than a get-together with the club. I planned to take her on a moonlit walk to the lake. I’d arranged for there to be a bottle of champagne waiting for us. I was going to ask her to marry me tonight. I couldn’t wait any longer.
When I was done with my shower, I pulled on a button-up shirt rather than a t-shirt and my best pair of jeans. Everyone knew what was planned. They had helped me plan it and the after-party as well. That was the real reason Devyn and Jocelyn took her to the shop. They were going to get her to buy and wear a nice dress.
I could feel nerves fluttering in my stomach. I was ninety-nine percent sure she’d say yes, but the thought of her not had me almost sweating. I checked on the ring box one more time. I’d come and get it before we went on our walk. Thankfully, even though it was the beginning of October, the weather had remained unseasonably warm. Perfect weather for an outdoor proposal.
The rattling of the doorknob grabbed my attention. I went over and swung it open. There she stood with a bag in her hands, trying to get the key in the door. I’d given her a key to my room at the clubhouse. None of us left our doors unlocked. Not with the bunnies and the crazy shit they might do. She gave me her beautiful smile. I tugged her into my arms and kissed her.
After thoroughly kissing her, I let her go. She was flushed and I could see the need in her eyes. I laughed. “Not right now, baby. We have to get ready to party with the gang. I promise we’ll have our own party later.” She pouted at me, making me laugh more.
“Why don’t you show me what you bought?”
She sat down her purse and opened the bag. She pulled out a long dress. It was black with swirls of red on it. Buttons ran down the entire length of it. I could tell it would mold her body, showing off her figure to perfection.
“Why don’t you wear that tonight?”